Apparatus for sterilizing grapefruit juice



Aug. 9, 1938. L. E. HoLLowAY APPARATUS FOR STERILIZING GRAPEFBUIT JUICE Filed April 10, 1937 Patented ug. v9, 19.38

-PATEN OFFICE l Fon sTnnILrzlNG naargrmnrrY .nnen

liiewla Emmette Holloway, Leesburg, amputation apra it, 19er, sensi as. nain 2 Claims.

The invention forming the subject matter of this application relates to apparatus for continuously sterilizing grapefruit juice, or juices of a similar character, wherein the now of juice and sterllizing heat must be timed and controlled to accord with the rate of ilow required to keep can iilling machines properly supplied.

The main object of the invention is t'o provide an apparatus for applying a constant sterilizing heat for a predetermined time to a stream of grapefruit juice constantly flowing by gravity from a source of supply to a canning machine.

A further object of the invention resides in the process of heating a continuously howing stream time sufficient to sterilizethe same thoroughly Without causing such break down of the juice elements as to impart thereto a hat or burnt taste.

@ther objects of the invention will become apparent as the detailed description thereof proceeds.

In the drawing: 4

Figure 1 is a central vertical section through the sterilizing part of the apparatus involved in carrying out this process; and

Figure 2 is a horizontal section taken on the line 2 2 of Figure 1.

The apparatus for carrying out this process comprises a substantially cylindrical tank 3 having a bottom 4. The upper end of the tank is open; and the tank is intended to be lled with water practically to the top thereof. A supply reservoir 5 is arranged at a suitable distance above .the top of the tank to provide a hydrostatic head for causing the juice to flow from the tank by gravity underpressure depending upon the head.

A pipe 6, connected to the reservoir 5, extends through the open top of the tank 3, and is bent to form an outer coil 1 having a series of closely spaced convolutions 'extending toward the bottom of the tank and connected to a valve controlled blow-out pipe 8, which extends through a packing gland 9 suitably secured to a screwthreaded boss Ill formed on the outer surface of the tank 3,

From` the blow-out pipe 8, the piping of coil 'I is continued as an inner coil Il upwardly to the top of the tank where its end is secured to one 4end of a iittingv designated generally by the refer- 1 ence numeral I2. An outlet pipe I3 is secured to the other end of the fitting l2 and passes through packing glands I4 and i5 suitably secured to bosses I6 and l1 extending in opposite directions of grapefruit juice, and the like, for a period of :from the side oi" the tank d near the upper end thereof.

The Water in the tank 3 is heated, preferably by means of steam derived from a suitable source of supply through the pipe it, thermostatically 5 controlled valve ill, pipe lill, and elbow il connected to a short section of pipe it which is screwthreaded into a boss 23 extending downwardly from the bottom t oi the tank t.

The bottom il of the tank Si is provided with an l0 upwardly projecting internally screwthreaded boss td receiving the .downwardly extending branch 25 of a steam jet designatedgenerally by the reference numeral it. As shown in the drawing, the steam jet 26 isprovided with any desired l5 number of arms radially extending from the branch tt. Four or these arms tl, 2t, t@ and til are shown in Figure d, and each arm is provided with a series of jet apertures di through which the steam is forced to heat the water in the tank t 20 and produce turbulence therein. The steam passes through the water to heat the same, and to ellect such circulation of the heated water as to maintain its temperature practically constant throughout the tank 3. The bottom of the tank 25 is provided with a valve controlled drain 32.

To control the temperature of the water in the tank il, a thermostatic element 33 is mounted in the tank near the upper end of the submerged coils. This element 33 is suitably connected 30 through the line 35 to the valve iii to regulatethe supply of steam from the source of supply to the tank, and in accordancewith the temperature of the water in the tank adjacent the element 33.

' The coils 'l and Il have the numbers of their 35 convolutions proportioned so that the time of downward ow ofthe juice in the tank 3 is about 'five times that vof the upward flow through the inner coil Il. The piping of which the coils are made is of constant cross-section throughout the 40 lengths thereof. This cross-section and relative lengths of coils are predetermined to raise and hold the` juice at sterilizing temperature for a fixed period of time, and to suit the rate at which the juice must flow through the outlet I3 to supply 45 the sterilized juice in quantity sufficient to ll the cans of a canning machine connected therewith.

It is to be understood that the invention is not to be considered as limited to the specic construction and arrangement described herein, since it is evident that many changes may be made without departing from the scope of the invention as defined bythe claims appended hereto.

What I claim is:

1. Apparatus for sterilizlng grapefruit juices comprising an open top container substantially lled with water, a reservoir for juice supported above the container, a pipe for conducting juice from the reservoir and bent to form concentric heating coils connected in series in the container, the outer coil being constructed to cause iiow of the juice from the top to the bottom of the container, the inner coil rising from the lower end of the outer coil to discharge at the top of the container, means for heating the water in the container to sterilizing temperature, and means operable by the heat of said water for automatically controlling said heating means.

2. Apparatus for sterilizing grapefruit juices comprising an open top container substantially trolled by the temperature of the water in said n container for automatically regulating the flow of heating fluid in said conduit.

LEWIS EMMET'IE HOLLOWAY. 

